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hxc87x

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my computer is running a bit warm, as in it kinda overheats and then becomes completely unresponsive. now, i know its over-heating because it only happens on hot days and doesnt happen when i leave the case open with a fan blowing into it.
whats the most effective way to cool down my computer? i've been reading about water cooling but it seems to cost a bit much... i have no idea what to do and dont want to keep my case open because i have a dog.
best solution for under R400?
thanks...
 
What are the specs of you PC - i.e. CPU (processor) speed, the make/model of the motherboard (can be found printed on the board when your case is open.

I would suugest giving the CPU fan and heatsink a good clean first, then remove both and clean the heatsink and CPU contact points - re-seat them using a decent thermal paste. If the problem still persists, then I think you should upgrade the CPU heatsink and fan before anything else.
 
look in bios and the motherboard software what % your CPU fan is running at. I have 11 fans in my box to keep it cool and it works like a charm. Not as noisy as one might think either. got three over the drives, two on the graphics card and the one built onto the graphics card, one on the top to blow out hot air and two on the back for the same reason. Two on the front to pull in cool air and one blowing onto the motherboard.

Lots of tidy wires =/
 
First, ensure that there's good airflow through the case. Having extra fans is less effective if there are cables and obstructions in the way.

This means spending an hour tidy the cabling up (if it's in a messy state), with some cable ties and lots of patience. Some of the wiring can be tucked into spaces beside the drives, for example.

Next, ensure that you have an intake fan at the front and an exhaust fan at the rear of the box.

Those two measures are often the basic-yet-overlooked factors to improve temps. Then climb into things like adding more fans (bigger is better) or replacing the thermal paste on your CPU and gfx card.
 
its a little more expensive but worth it

aerocool zero degree

you could also open the side of your box and put a normal fan on 2 or 3 blowing air in on the hot days

there is no point having a good cpu cooler with poor airflow in your case
 
Dange--Russ said:
look in bios and the motherboard software what % your CPU fan is running at. I have 11 fans in my box to keep it cool and it works like a charm. Not as noisy as one might think either. got three over the drives, two on the graphics card and the one built onto the graphics card, one on the top to blow out hot air and two on the back for the same reason. Two on the front to pull in cool air and one blowing onto the motherboard.

Lots of tidy wires =/
Click to expand...

ok, how do i get into bios?


comp is a E4500 with a msi p4m900m2 mobo and a 2 x 250gig hdd along with a 9600gt (which i havent tested yet because im scared the over-heating might damage my stuff :()
 
hxc87x said:
ok, how do i get into bios?


comp is a E4500 with a msi p4m900m2 mobo and a 2 x 250gig hdd along with a 9600gt (which i havent tested yet because im scared the over-heating might damage my stuff :()
Click to expand...

When you turn it on and it starts booting up look for "Press del for setup" or something like that. Most mobo's use del but some use f8 and such. it should say somewhere when it starts up. checking the heat sink is also a good idea. I run my fans on at a constant speed of 70 % just to be safe, got alot of hardware... or I did until eskom came along.

My box runs at CPU 35' and about 50' when gaming.

GPU gets to 55' max. :D :D

all the blue fan LED's do make it hard to look at anything else. hehe.

The last LAN we went to the guy sitting behind my box had a jerry curl effect in his hair from all the exhaust he got ;) :D :D
 
hxc87x said:
ok, how do i get into bios?


comp is a E4500 with a msi p4m900m2 mobo and a 2 x 250gig hdd along with a 9600gt (which i havent tested yet because im scared the over-heating might damage my stuff :()
Click to expand...

Does Windows lock up when just browsing the net listing to music, or only when gaming?

If you shoving a fan infront of it and it does not lock up then it definately seems like a cooling problem!

What type of case are you using? could be getting little or no air flow in it, if that's the case you just need to stick some 80mm fans in it and all should be fine!

Try download a program called speed fan, http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php this should tell you at what Temp your CPU is running.
 
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ok, so sticking a few fans in my case seems to be the most popular option along with cleaning everything. is there a difference between fans made by antec/zalman vs no name fans? i just have a normal tower without the clear side panel so i have no use for all those LED's.
speedfan says my system is at 50c and my cpu cores are both at 41c with my drives at 47c

cool program that speedfan...
 
hxc87x said:
ok, so sticking a few fans in my case seems to be the most popular option along with cleaning everything. is there a difference between fans made by antec/zalman vs no name fans? i just have a normal tower without the clear side panel so i have no use for all those LED's.
speedfan says my system is at 50c and my cpu cores are both at 41c with my drives at 47c

cool program that speedfan...
Click to expand...

System at 50c is kind of HOT! :) so I would stick fans in there!!

I would reccomend you put them in a way so it blows air right through the case, Setting atleast one at the back and on at the front or side, so the fan at the front pull's in air and the back fan pushes it out!

I like Vantech, The stealth series is realy nice moves alot of air and realy quite!!
 
ok... now for the next question... where can i find 70mm fans?
my holes for my fans are 70x70 and 100mm on the diagonal.
or should i just drill new holes?
 
hxc87x said:
ok... now for the next question... where can i find 70mm fans?
my holes for my fans are 70x70 and 100mm on the diagonal.
or should i just drill new holes?
Click to expand...

Ah okay, so it has space for a 70mm fan and a 100mm on the side?

Just have a look around on Prophecy or Sybarartic not too sure if they have 70mm's but they should have 80's and that should fit perfectly, as well as a 100mm
 
For case fans, I'd go with the cheapest you can find & then replace it with another cheap one when it gets clogged with dust & noisy. With CPU fans, brand name is usually better.

The e4500 should be cool enough with a stock fan though. (Assuming no overclock)
 
hxc87x said:
ok... now for the next question... where can i find 70mm fans?
my holes for my fans are 70x70 and 100mm on the diagonal.
or should i just drill new holes?
Click to expand...

Sybaritic 80mm fans - the holes are 70mm along the edge, and 100mm diagonally - the lower the dBa noise rating of the fan the better, but you also need to look at the CMF airflow value, as this needs to be fairly high - generally, the lower the dBa, the lower the CFM and RPM of the fan.

If your case supports it, have at least a front fan pulling fresh air in and a rear fan or two acting as an exhaust...

I got me some Zalman ZM-F1BL fans that have a good combination of the above - have 10 in my system and they are very quiet. Got mine from Frontosa, but I don't think they sell to the public...
The non lighted version is the ZM-F1
 
Glordit said:
Ah okay, so it has space for a 70mm fan and a 100mm on the side?

Just have a look around on Prophecy or Sybarartic not too sure if they have 70mm's but they should have 80's and that should fit perfectly, as well as a 100mm
Click to expand...

i think you misunderstood me... but ya, all 3 places to mount fans are 70x70, which is very weird because i cant find any 70mm fans!
 
i should read all the posts...

howardb said:
Sybaritic 80mm fans - the holes are 70mm along the edge, and 100mm diagonally - the lower the dBa noise rating of the fan the better, but you also need to look at the CMF airflow value, as this needs to be fairly high - generally, the lower the dBa, the lower the CFM and RPM of the fan.

If your case supports it, have at least a front fan pulling fresh air in and a rear fan or two acting as an exhaust...

I got me some Zalman ZM-F1BL fans that have a good combination of the above - have 10 in my system and they are very quiet. Got mine from Frontosa, but I don't think they sell to the public...
The non lighted version is the ZM-F1
Click to expand...


so 80mm fans have mounting holes 70mm apart?
 
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